Dryopidae

Common name:

Long-toed water beetles

Number of species:

9

Size Range:

3-4mm

Tarsi:

5-5-5.

Images:

Description:

Represented in Britain by 9 species, all 3-6mm long. Most occur in semi-aquatic habitats, particularly wet mud, and only one species is fully aquatic: Pomatinus substriatus (Müller), which is found in deep streams. Dark in colour, oval to elongate and with prominent tarsal claws, they can appear similar to Elmidae but have short antennae with a pectinate club, rather than that family’s long threadlike appendages.